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07 December 2012

Dog treat manufacturer refuses to recall treats; FDA issues warning

There are good guys and bad guys in the pet food and treat world. The FDA, which sometimes wears a black hat and sometimes a white, today issued a blunt warning about a product manufactured by one of the bad guys: "Don’t feed certain Nature’s Deli Chicken Jerky Dog treats," the headline reads. "Product may be contaminated with Salmonella."

You may notice this says "do not feed" rather than "recall alert." That's because the manufacturer of the treats, Kasel Associated Industries, Inc., refused to issue a recall.

Kasel is the manufacturer of several pet treat products plagued with salmonella and recalls this year.

For example, Kasel makes Boots & Barkley American Beef Bully Sticks, American Pig Ears, and American Variety Pack Dog Treats, all of which they voluntarily recalled in September and October, also for salmonella; the Boots & Barkely treats are widely sold through Target stores.

Additionally, the Nature's Deli jerkey treats were voluntarily recalled in October, again for salmonella; these treats were sold primarily through the Sam's Club chains.

In this case, however, the company has declined to issue a voluntary recall. While the FDA technically has mandatory recall authority, they did not use it, instead issuing this warning.

So, you wonder, who are the good guys? In this case, it's Costco, the retail giant that sells the Kasel jerky treats. Costco is working with the FDA to get the product off their shelves -- just as they did during the 2007 pet food recall, unlike many other brands.

By the way, these jerky treats are made in the USA, not China, so this alert is not related to the ongoing problems with imported jerky pet treats.

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Made in the US, but where did the ingredients come from? Apparently we import a lot of chicken from China.

I have the same problem with some Natural Glucosamine chicken treats I bought at Whole Foods. My dog got explosive Diarrhea and it appears the treats are the culprit. Read the package and the wording is "manufactured in the US". I wrote them and Whole Foods, never heard from either. Threw out the treats and he hasn't had a problem since.